Nutrient Utilization and Growth Performance of Jalauni Lambs Grazed on Three Tier Silvipasture System

Chemical composition of pasture biomass as well as nutrient utilization and growth performance of Jalauni lambs were studied under grazing on three tier silvipasture consisting (stocking rate of 2ACU/ha) of grass (Cenchrusciliaris), legume (Stylosanthesseabrana), shrubs (Ziziphusxylopyrus, Ziziphusmauritiana, Acacia catechu) and tree (Hardiwickiabinata) during growing (August-October) as wellas post-growing (November-January) periods of pasture in Bundelkhand region along with supplementation (1% ofbody weight) of concentrate mixture. Average dry matter (DM) content of pasture increased with advancement of maturity from 42.89% during growing period to 52.59% in post growing period, with concomitant increase in neutral detergent fiber (NDF) content from 57.67% to 61.36% and reduction in crude protein(CP) content from 11.55% to 8.64%. DM intake of lambs was significantly (P<0.05) higher in growing than post growing period. Similarly, digestibility of nutrients namely DM, OM, NDF and CP were higher in growing than post growing period. Intake (g/W^0.75) of digestible crude protein (DCP) was higher (6.15) in September as compared to December (3.74). Metabolizable energy (ME) intake (kJ/W^0.75) also followed the same trend. Daily live weight gain (g/d) of Jalauni lambs was also significantly (P<0.05) higher in growing than post growing period. It was concluded that nutrient intake, nutrient utilization and growth performance of Jalauni lambs were significantly (P<0.05) affected during post growing period due to deterioration ofnutritive value of available pasture biomass, however, three tier sylvipasture system in the present study could be utilized for rearing of small ruminants for sustainable production.